Alibaba Launches New AI Chatbot Service To Encourage Consumer Business

AI Alibaba chatbot is integrated into the Quark application (photo: x @AlibabaGroup)

JAKARTA China's e-commerce giant Alibaba launched the latest artificial intelligence (AI)-based assistant chatbot service on Thursday, October 23 local time. This move is a new effort by the company to penetrate the consumer market, which is currently dominated by ByteDance and Tencent.

The chatbot is integrated into the Quark application, which was originally known as a browser (browser) but has now evolved into Alibaba's flagship consumer application. Quark is equipped with various AI features such as smart searches and is now reinforced by text and voice-based conversation assistants who are able to provide real-time information and services.

In his official statement, Alibaba said this new service can be used for free by all users. The chatbot is driven by the Qwen3 model, the latest generation of Alibaba AI technology which is claimed to have stronger reasoning, understanding, and execution capabilities.

So far, Alibaba's AI focus has been more directed at corporate clients through the cloud service division. The launch of chatbots in Quark marks a shift in direction to attract public consumers again, after Alibaba's previous AI assistant app Tongyi failed to record widespread adoption in the domestic market.

According to AI product tracker Aicpb.com data, Tongyi only has about 6.96 million monthly active users as of September 2025. That figure is far behind its main competitors: ByteDance's Doubao with 150 million users, DeepSek with 73.4 million, and Tencent with 64.2 million.

Globally, AI assistants are becoming an important line for world tech giants like Google with Gemini, Microsoft with Copilot, and OpenAI with ChatGPT.

Selain chatbot, Alibaba juga mengumumkan pembukaan pre-sale untuk Quark AI Glasses di platform e-commerce Tmall mulai Jumat tengah malam. Produk kacamata ini akan mulai dikirim pada Desember mendatang dengan harga 4.699 yuan atau sekitar 659 dolar AS.

The smart glasses were first introduced in July 2025, making Alibaba the newest player in the AI-powered wearables market, competing directly with Meta Platforms and other smart device manufacturers.

Alibaba's move shows the company's ambition to strengthen its position in the consumer realm through a combination of digital ecosystems and connected AI devices.